Body of student who tried to rescue drowning man found in Tamsui River

Taipei, May 14 (CNA) The body of a university student who jumped into the Tamsui River to rescue an elderly man near Dadaocheng Wharf in Taipei on Tuesday was recovered early Thursday, local authorities said.

The Taipei City Fire Department said the body of the 24-year-old Chinese Culture University student, surnamed Lee (李), was found at 6 a.m. about 30 meters upstream from the wharf. Lee's family has verified the identity, the department said.

The body of the 93-year-old man whom Lee tried to rescue was found later Tuesday near Zhongxiao Bridge, about 650 meters upstream from Dadaocheng Wharf, hours after both he and Lee went missing.

According to local media reports, Lee was jogging with a friend, surnamed Kuo (郭), along the riverside at around 5 a.m. Tuesday when they spotted a man struggling in the water near Dadaocheng Wharf.

Kuo told reporters that Lee had gotten off work at 2 a.m. and, knowing Kuo was a night owl, asked him if he wanted to go out to eat.

After having a meal and chatting, Lee said he wanted to take a 5-kilometer run as part of his exercise routine and asked Kuo to join him.

As they were finishing their run at around 5 a.m., Kuo said, they saw a man's head and hat bobbing in the river.

Kuo said that while he had never gone swimming with Lee, he knew Lee was a student-athlete at university and had spoken about wanting to get certified as a lifeguard.

Before Lee jumped into the river, Kuo said, he asked him, "Are you ok?" and Lee replied, "Yes." Lee then jumped into the water, and soon after, Kuo lost sight of both men, he said.

When the Taipei Fire Department was called to the scene, rafts and drones were deployed to try to find the two men, while a woman identified by local media as Lee's sister waited at the wharf for updates.

According to Taipei police, surveillance video footage of the wharf area shows the elderly man, surnamed Chang (張), slowly walking out onto an emergency pier, slipping through a guardrail and entering the river.

The footage also shows Lee jumping in to save the drowning Chang and making brief contact, before Chang's head goes under, police said. About 20 seconds later, Lee is also submerged and does not resurface, the footage shows, according to police.

From the shore, Kuo tried to toss them a lifebuoy, but the rope attached to it was too short to reach the men in the river, according to police.